Doctoral Candidate Manager – The University of Auckland – Auckland City, Auckland

Te Whiwhinga mahi | The opportunity

We are seeking a Doctoral Candidate Manager to join our School of Graduate Studies (SGS), which is the central service division responsible for the management and enhancement of doctoral research programmes at the University of Auckland. You will lead a proactive and dedicated central team that provides specialist support to our Students and Academics.

As our new Doctoral Candidate Manager, you will ensure that the division provides expert advice, decision making and world-class services and support throughout the doctoral lifecycle to students, managers and senior academics within and beyond the University.

Your time will be split between operational management, team leadership and the strategic development of the service and our policies. The below gives you a snapshot of your key responsibilities.

• Act as Business Lead for Doctoral Candidate Management Systems, including primary relationship with the Product Owner, Connect and other relevant teams to manage service delivery, strategic initiatives, upgrades and system improvements.
• Provide analysis and recommendations on high-risk doctoral cases and scenarios to senior University leadership, and make delegated decisions as required.
• Provide leadership, mentoring and direction for staff.
• Ensure staff have the appropriate level of responsibility, training and resources to perform their jobs effectively and achieve agreed goals.
• Ensure the division provides the highest level of doctoral candidature advice and expertise in the areas of policy and regulations, guidelines and processes.
• Lead significant university-wide initiatives to improve the management and enhancement of doctoral candidature and doctoral programmes.

For more detailed information, please refer to the Position Description.

Mō tō mātou rōpū | About the team

The School of Graduate Studies is the central service division responsible for the management and enhancement of doctoral research programmes at the University of Auckland. SGS facilitates support and services for doctoral candidates and their supervisors across the institution. The division works across the lifecycle of the doctoral programmes, from enrolment to completion, and leads strategic initiatives for doctoral students, supervisors and programmes across and beyond the University.

He kōrero mōu | About you

We are seeking someone who is excited by the idea of managing a small but critical team who balance their time between applying policy and procedures, advising academics, and supporting students. You will need to deep dive into our policies to quickly get up to speed with our ways of working before initiating improvement projects and advising on far-reaching policy decisions with the leaders of the University.

This is a role for someone who is comfortable with complex challenges and decision making, with the ability to understand policy issues and put forward ideas and solutions which can then be adapted into our future processes.

To be considered for this role it is essential that you have:

• A Degree/or postgraduate qualification. Ideally, you will have a PhD and experience working in a large tertiary institution.
• Significant experience in a management role with proven experience in strategic planning and implementation within a large, complex organisation.
• Proven experience in analysis, policy advice and provision of sound recommendations on high-risk decision making.
• Demonstrated skills and experience in influencing senior stakeholders, change management and working collaboratively.
• Experience in developing, enhancing and implementing high-quality processes and systems and delivery of services, including compliance and risk management.

Proven people management skills and experience.

Ngā āhuatanga kei a mātou | What we offer

The University of Auckland is New Zealand’s leading university and maintains significant computational, laboratory and analytic facilities. Auckland itself is frequently rated as one of the world’s most liveable cities.

• The University is committed to providing an excellent working environment through:
• Flexible employment practices (including working from home, flexible hours)
• Up to 6.75% company superannuation scheme
• A competitive salary with five weeks’ annual leave

In addition, we also offer career development programmes, discounted car parking, a generous parental leave allowance, childcare and a number of other discounts on internal and external services.

For more information please visit Staff Benefits.

Me pēhea te tuku tono | How to apply

Applications must be submitted online, by the closing date of 4 March 2022 to be considered. Please include your cover letter and your CV highlighting how you can meet the skills and experiences detailed above.

Please reach out to Neil Constable via neil.constable@auckland.ac.nz for a confidential conversation. Please note we are happy to answer your questions but we do not accept applications by email.